2014 Bearfootin' Bears hit downtown

People watch as 20 Bearfootin' Bears are unveiled on Main Street Friday evening. The bears will be on display in the downtown area through Oct. 25, when they will be auctioned off to raise money for area nonprofits.

Published: Friday, May 9, 2014 at 9:00 p.m.

Last Modified: Friday, May 9, 2014 at 9:00 p.m.

Hiding under a rainbow of sheets with only their hind paws sticking out, 2014's Bearfootin' Bears waited patiently for their big reveal Friday evening at the First Citizens Bank Plaza.

Since 2003, The Bearfootin' Public Art Walk has helped raise money for Historic Downtown Hendersonville and local nonprofits. Funds from last year's auction assisted with the artist selection process that resulted in the creation of the Mountain Memory fountain recently added to downtown.

City officials said they were excited to have so much interest this year from people wanting to sponsor the bears, and ended up capping the number of bears at 20 per year.

“We haven't had 20 bears in more than five years I think, so it's nice to see the sort of reinvigoration,” Lew said. “We did 10, 12, 13 bears the last three years, so this year was a real boost in terms of the number of folks that wanted to participate ... which is great for downtown, because that means we've got bears really all over the place.”

A crowd of around 150 people flocked to the plaza for the unveiling. Children gathered in front, peeking under the sheets as each bear was introduced one by one along with its sponsor, artist and beneficiaries.

Adult Probation Officer and former City Councilman Jeff Collis said he's been wanting to sponsor a bear for a number of years, but also wanted to wait until he was no longer in office to jump in. This year he ended up sponsoring two bears.

“I had planned on sponsoring one for the Medical Loan Closet, and my mom's longtime boyfriend and dance partner passed away suddenly in January,” Collis said. “They loved the street dance for the last four or five years, so I did a clogging bear, and its actually dressed in his outfit in memory of him. It was exciting and I think he'd appreciate it.”

Collis said he hadn't seen the bears since they were clear-coated, and he was excited to see their glossy finish.

Finding two artists wasn't the easiest process according to Collis, but he said he got lucky and found Eric Dergara, who attends the same gym as Collis' coworker.

His other artist, Beth Donahue, has painted the downtown bears before and Collis said he knew she'd be perfect for “Clogging Bear” thanks to her experience painting outfits on the bears.

Degara, who typically paints landscapes, said working on a bear was a little bit different than what he is used to.

“Well, it's a challenge because, you know, it's not a flat canvas, so it's a challenge and it takes some forethought and you have to think about what you're going to do,” Degara said. “You can't think about it too much because you just got to start and go from there. I think they look great when they have that clear coat on them; it really brings the colors out.”

Local Discovery Map owner Lars Wiren also sponsored his first bear this year, “Ralop Bear,” sporting a map-themed button-down shirt.

“We just wanted to do something in the community,” Wiren said. “We're new — we just moved here 20 months ago and ended up buying a business here.”

Wiren's artist, Del Holt, who has painted Chicago cows, horses in Aiken, S.C. and pigs in Beaufort, S.C., said as soon as he found out what Wiren's business was, he knew exactly what he wanted to do. He intentionally made his bear a polar bear to signify that he was a visiting bear.

Director of the Blue Ridge Humane Society Lutrelle O'Cain said she was surprised to find out they'd be the beneficiary of three bears.

“We are well represented on Main Street, so that's cool,” O'cain said. “Every year it has grown for us and we're very happy about it. Main Street has become so animal friendly, and this encourages people to bring their animals downtown.”

O'Cain said she hopes having the humane society's name throughout downtown will help encourage people to consider adoption.

<p>Hiding under a rainbow of sheets with only their hind paws sticking out, 2014's Bearfootin' Bears waited patiently for their big reveal Friday evening at the First Citizens Bank Plaza.</p><p>Since 2003, The Bearfootin' Public Art Walk has helped raise money for Historic Downtown Hendersonville and local nonprofits. Funds from last year's auction assisted with the artist selection process that resulted in the creation of the Mountain Memory fountain recently added to downtown. </p><p>City officials said they were excited to have so much interest this year from people wanting to sponsor the bears, and ended up capping the number of bears at 20 per year. </p><p>“We haven't had 20 bears in more than five years I think, so it's nice to see the sort of reinvigoration,” Lew said. “We did 10, 12, 13 bears the last three years, so this year was a real boost in terms of the number of folks that wanted to participate ... which is great for downtown, because that means we've got bears really all over the place.”</p><p>A crowd of around 150 people flocked to the plaza for the unveiling. Children gathered in front, peeking under the sheets as each bear was introduced one by one along with its sponsor, artist and beneficiaries. </p><p>Adult Probation Officer and former City Councilman Jeff Collis said he's been wanting to sponsor a bear for a number of years, but also wanted to wait until he was no longer in office to jump in. This year he ended up sponsoring two bears. </p><p>“I had planned on sponsoring one for the Medical Loan Closet, and my mom's longtime boyfriend and dance partner passed away suddenly in January,” Collis said. “They loved the street dance for the last four or five years, so I did a clogging bear, and its actually dressed in his outfit in memory of him. It was exciting and I think he'd appreciate it.”</p><p>Collis said he hadn't seen the bears since they were clear-coated, and he was excited to see their glossy finish. </p><p>Finding two artists wasn't the easiest process according to Collis, but he said he got lucky and found Eric Dergara, who attends the same gym as Collis' coworker. </p><p>His other artist, Beth Donahue, has painted the downtown bears before and Collis said he knew she'd be perfect for “Clogging Bear” thanks to her experience painting outfits on the bears.</p><p>Degara, who typically paints landscapes, said working on a bear was a little bit different than what he is used to.</p><p>“Well, it's a challenge because, you know, it's not a flat canvas, so it's a challenge and it takes some forethought and you have to think about what you're going to do,” Degara said. “You can't think about it too much because you just got to start and go from there. I think they look great when they have that clear coat on them; it really brings the colors out.”</p><p>Local Discovery Map owner Lars Wiren also sponsored his first bear this year, “Ralop Bear,” sporting a map-themed button-down shirt. </p><p>“We just wanted to do something in the community,” Wiren said. “We're new — we just moved here 20 months ago and ended up buying a business here.”</p><p>Wiren's artist, Del Holt, who has painted Chicago cows, horses in Aiken, S.C. and pigs in Beaufort, S.C., said as soon as he found out what Wiren's business was, he knew exactly what he wanted to do. He intentionally made his bear a polar bear to signify that he was a visiting bear. </p><p>Director of the Blue Ridge Humane Society Lutrelle O'Cain said she was surprised to find out they'd be the beneficiary of three bears.</p><p>“We are well represented on Main Street, so that's cool,” O'cain said. “Every year it has grown for us and we're very happy about it. Main Street has become so animal friendly, and this encourages people to bring their animals downtown.”</p><p>O'Cain said she hopes having the humane society's name throughout downtown will help encourage people to consider adoption. </p><p>Reach Bindewald at 694-7890 or renee.bindewald@blueridgenow.com.</p>